Legal Framework Module for Nurses

This course is split into eight sessions:

• Session 1 is an introduction to professional, legal and ethical issues concerning young people and their health.
• Session 2 discusses the circumstances under which health practitioners have to assess the ‘competence’ of young people to give consent for medical treatment or/and for the release of confidential information. The variation in legal aspects between countries in the UK are also discussed in the session.
• Session 3 introduces the main principles and legal aspects of confidentiality as applied to the care of young people. It will also help you understand the practical issues related to delivery of confidential services to young people.
• Session 4 examines the circumstances under which you may have to break confidentiality either by disclosing something that has been told to you verbally or that you have written in medical records. It also looks at circumstances where accidental disclosure may occur and what action may need to be taken when this happens.
• Session 5 deals with the concept of young people giving, or not giving, their ‘consent’ to health interventions. This session also discusses what happens when a young person lacks the capacity to give consent.
• Session 6 introduces you to the concept of ‘bioethics’ and its importance when approaching adolescent health care, particularly in relation to sexual and reproductive health issues.
• Session 7 aims to help you understand the deliberative process, which is one logical way of working through bioethical issues, particularly applicable in relation to sexual and reproductive health issues of young people.
• Session 8 aims to help you understand specific issues relating to child protection for adolescents and the wider context of safeguarding.

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eIntegrity programmes are developed by NHS Health Education England’s e-Learning for Healthcare programme (HEE e-LfH). 

The programmes are high quality self-directed learning programmes.  They are designed to support training and CPD and are excellent resources alongside other traditional teaching methodologies.  They have been developed by the UK NHS for use in the NHS.  However, many of the programmes have international relevance, particularly the specialty training programmes which are often mapped to UK specialty training curricula.

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